Mediation in Contested Divorce Cases in East Brunswick

There is a Latin term called parens parentis, which essentially mandates
that a judge, at all times, must focus on the best interest of the child,
no matter what other issues may be occurring.

Frequently attorney advise clients that a person is important to the judge
and the other parent is important to judge, but no one is more important
to the judge than the child. The judge is going to do whatever it takes
to make sure that child is protected, even if it is something that does
not make the parents happy.

Mediation in contested divorce cases in East Brunswick is supposed to one
way of mitigating conflict between parents and making the divorce process
easier for the child. If you want to know more, call an
experienced divorce lawyer today.

How Does an Uncontested Divorce Become Contested?

When an uncontested divorce becomes contested, that usually means something
went wrong while the spouses were discussing settling their outstanding
divorce issues. All it takes is one point of contention, and then all
of a sudden the former spouses agree on nothing, and mediation becomes
necessary.

Protecting Children in Contested Divorce Cases

Divorce lawyers promote two parents learning how to co-parent together
in a civil, friendly manner so the child is not harmed in any way. The
goal is to insulate the child from the process as much as possible, which
is where mediation in contested divorce cases in East Brunswick comes in.

Signs a Child is Affected by the Divorce Process

There are two things that the divorce attorney looks for. One is a child
who is always an honor roll student and suddenly their grades are falling.
The second is a child who has always been very well behaved and all of
a sudden is getting into trouble and acting out.

Those are the two tell tales. Most divorce attorneys will counsel their
client concerning necessary conversation about what the child is hearing;
are the parents fighting in the presence of the child.

Even at the very tender years of two and three-year-olds, children are
sensitive and know something is wrong. That is something that is done
across the board, to protect children at all times; to implore the clients
to get along for the sake of their children’s welfare.

Judges in Contested Divorce Cases

Judges of the Family Part of the Superior Court of New Jersey, in a contested
divorce, will strive to help the parties to settlement and agreements.
Many times it is done with a private meeting in the judge’s chamber
with only the two attorneys present and the judge will give both lawyers
the judge’s opinion with respect to certain outstanding issues which
is the judge essentially putting their hand in that case.

Then the attorney will go to their client and explain what the judge is
planning, what they think is fair and why, and hopefully the client will
agree with the judge. The client should very seriously consider this option
for settlement.

Role of a Mediator

An uncontested divorce is definitely simpler, quicker, and less expensive.
The Family Part of the Superior Court of New Jersey is geared to promote
settlements. Mediation is another avenue for the parties that can lead
to settlement of a contested divorce, which now becomes an uncontested
divorce, very early on in the litigation.

Through the course of litigation and civil procedure, the family court
here in New Jersey is geared for settlement. There is a big court event
approximately halfway through a contested divorce called an early settlement
panel. This is essentially a nonbinding arbitration comprised of two experienced
attorneys in family law, who are appointed by the courts to volunteer
several times per year to help settle cases. This panel can be instrumental
in ensuring the success of mediation in contested divorce cases in East Brunswick

With an Early Settlement Panel event, there are two panelists who are experienced
in Family Law in the county. There is no vested interest in the case,
so the attorney panelists are there to help settle the case. With the
high volume of divorces, especially in Middlesex County, that is what
judges are looking for; lawyers who can help settle cases and clear their dockets.

Early Settlement Panel Process

The Early Settlement Panelists will volunteer their time to bring forth
a non-binding recommendation. Neither party is forced to take the recommendation.

The two lawyers go in to meet with the two panelists; they make their respective
arguments, and the panelists will probably ask a handful of questions
that they feel they need to know in order to make a recommendation.

They will then excuse the two attorneys and then deliberate amongst themselves
over what they think a fair settlement would be based on the facts, the
law, and the presentation of each respective lawyer. Then the panelists
have all four people come in; both lawyers and both spouses. There is
a little speech about it being a good idea to settle their case and listen
to their recommendation.

Both parties can agree to it, both parties can disagree with it, and if
that is the case, then that leads to the next significant event which
is called an economic mediation. Economic mediation is an accelerated
version of the early settlement process.

Economic Mediations

Early settlement panel goes pretty quickly, but economic mediation is different.
Each spouse gets two to three hours from an experienced attorney at their
office and each spouse is paying three lawyers. The best mediators have
the ability to take two people who would not agree to anything and somehow
get these people to come to an agreement.Economic medications have lasted
one hour, somebody storms out, and that is that. They do not always work.
If you wish to know more about mediation in contested divorce cases in
East Brunswick,
get in touch with an East Brunswick divorce lawyer today.

The information on this website is for general information purposes only.
Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual
case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt
or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.